Moments of Life
by Lt.Gungirl
Summary: After the series. Moments focusing on Akihito and Mirai's relationship. Real short one-shots I used to get a feel for writing this series.
1. Chapter 1

Prologue:

Akihito Kanbara was unable to take his eyes off of the strawberry blond in front of him. She was back. She was standing in front of him. Her caramel colored eyes shining from behind her red rimmed glasses.

He looked at her and the tears ran freely. "I love it when you wear your glasses." He whispered again.

Mirai Kuriyama smiled and stepped towards him. "I know you do." She murmured.

"Are you really here?" He asked. Part of his mind was in disbelief. The other part burned with a million emotions all at once.

She nodded and stretched a hand out towards him. He reached his own hand out and they touched. Fingertips brushed together ever so lightly.

He stepped closer and hugged her. Strong arms enveloped her in a warm embrace. Warmth radiated from her to him. She was real. She was in his arms. And he knew he would never ever let her go again. There was no way he could survive losing her a third time. Immortal or not it would kill him.

She wrapped her arms around his waist fighting her own joyful tears. "Yes Senpai, I'm really here."

Akihito suddenly lost the ability to stand. His legs gave out and he slid to his knees still holding onto Mirai. His face buried against her stomach as he fought to compose himself. But he was just too happy and surprised and confused and shocked to even begin to sort through it. Tears soaked into her shirt as he cried. Twice she had vanished into a million glittering pieces. Once as a dream the other for real, but both goodbyes had been painfully traumatizing.

She put a hand on his head feeling his soft golden hair under her fingers. Still clutching her tightly he spoke against her now wet shirt. "I missed you."

He felt her tears falling onto his scalp and shuddered. They were together again.


	2. Chapter 2

Akihito looked at the girl sitting across from him. She was busy eating up a hearty bowl of rice with beef. As she dove in for another bite he chuckled warmly.

Mirai looked at him. "What?" She asked before placing the full chopsticks in her mouth.

"I just find it cute how you eat after you fight youmu." He said smiling.

She looked at him blankly. "You're being unpleasant." She murmured swallowing.

He stifled a laugh as she looked down at her food. "Kuriyama-san," He started again. He'd barely eaten, but then again he had something he wanted to say. Only a couple weeks ago she had returned to Nagatsuki after she had disappeared when Akihito had defeated Beyond the Boundary. Now that they were together again he hoped that they could move they're relationship forward. He wanted nothing more than to kiss her. And to tell her that he loved her.

"Yes?" She asked her brown eyes turning back to him.

"Right before you vanished, you said you were glad you fell in love with me. What made you fall in love with me?"

Mirai looked at him and set her chopsticks down. Her eyes were wide as she thought for a moment. She smiled at him then.

"It was the way you treated me. When we met you didn't look down on me. You weren't afraid of my blood. You even offered to help me. You never once thought badly of me because I couldn't pay for a meal or because I was afraid to do my duty as a Spirit World Warrior." She paused to catch her breath and took his hand in hers.

"You treated me like I was special. You came to save me even though it meant putting yourself in danger. Every time I needed someone you were there. Even when you knew I could unintentionally harm you, you found a way to show me kindness. Not since Yui died had I been treated so kindly by anyone." There were tears welling in her eyes.

"It was your heart that I fell in love with. Your selflessness and your compassion made me realize that maybe just maybe I was wrong about the world, about myself." Her voice grew weak as she tried to keep from losing it.

"No one has ever looked past my blood like you do. And in doing so you gave me a relationship I could only dream about. You fought for me, you held me, you carried me, you yelled at me when I was being stupid, you told me you understood me, you showed me more love than I had ever seen before."

Akihito leaned forward and with his free hand wiped away her tears.

"You gave me something worth fighting for." She murmured.

"Kuriyama-san," Akihito began but she lifted her hand and stopped him. "Thank you Akihito Kanbara, for making me feel like I was important and special and needed."

He grabbed bother her hands with his and pulled her forward. "No, thank you Kuriyama-san." He whispered placing his forehead against hers. They were both warm and the heat from the touch spread down their spines like liquid fire.

"Like you said, we aren't alone anymore." Mirai murmured. She was trying very hard not to kiss him but when he sighed and she turned to look up at him she didn't realize he was gazing down at her.

Their lips brushed instantly. Surprise lit in Akihito's eyes as he felt the heat in his lips. They seemed to burn with some unfulfilled desire. He wanted a real kiss.

Mirai had turned bright red as she fought the urge to turn away and hide. That wasn't necessary with Akihito. The sudden touch had sparked something inside of her. Something she realized she hadn't known she wanted.

"Call me Mirai." She murmured leaning closer against her logical judgment. She was going to get a real kiss from him right here right now.

"Mirai." Akihito whispered gently. The way he said it was so full of respect and kindness and love that she lost her last shred of restraint and leaned forward towards his face. The kiss was sudden and unsure. Neither one was experienced in kissing, it wasn't like they kissed people regularly.

But the emotion and the desire was more powerful than unaccustomed lips. When they pulled away both were shocked and rosy cheeked.

"Akihito," Mirai whispered between breaths but he was already leaning forward again.


	3. Chapter 3

Akihito screams her name once before he charges blindly. He knows he will not die from the attack. He leaps over her huddled form and lands right in front of her. He promised to ensure he never loses her again. Without a sound the burning yellow light pierces him through the chest. It sears his flesh and he screams again. The pain is almost more than he can bear. It eats away at his senses as he tries to keep from losing it.

His cry startles the girl and she lifts her head to see him accept the attack meant for her. Her light brown eyes widen with surprise and gratitude as she watches the man she loves fight against the impressive attack. The scent of burning flesh stings her nose. But now she needs to use this moment while the youmu is busy with him.

Mirai's call is cut off by a sudden flash of blue-green energy. Akihito raises his right hand, points it towards the grayish giant-like youmu, and releases a sudden burst of negative energy.

He stares at his hand in shock. He believed that he could not access any of his youmu powers now that Beyond the Boundary was back where it belonged. The attack strikes the creature head on and it falls back. The yellow energy cuts off allowing the young man a moment to catch his breath. He staggers but remains on his feet. His body heals itself almost instantly. The wounds are not bleeding but his shirt has a hole burned through the front.

Mirai is up on her feet and puts her hand on his shoulder.

"Are you ok?" She asks. She seems unfazed by the sudden transformation of his hand.

He nods. The creature moans as it starts to rise. The glowing eyes are red and angry. Mirai's eyes narrow and she raises her blood sword.

"Together?" She asks.

Akihito nods again raising his hand. "Now!" He shouts and they both take off.

Racing towards their adversary they prepare to finish it off.

Mirai leaps into the air yelling a battle cry as she swings her blood sword. The blade strikes the left arm and it goes deep into the flesh. She imagines her blood shooting through the creature and it does. Her own blood liquefies from the sword and rockets out of the youmu from several different points.

The youmu's scream shakes the very air around the two teens. Akihito punches the youmu's side his transfigured right hand sparking with energy.

There is a blast of energy and the wind picks up around them. A flash of light blinds the two as the youmu implodes on itself.

A dark stone falls to the ground. It's about the size of a baseball and glistens with veins of sapphire.

Mirai puts her ring back on her pinky finger as she retracts her blood sword. Akihito's hand changes back to normal. He leans on his bent knees breathing heavily.

They both share a smile as they look at the stone and then at each other. Mirai has a cut on her cheek that Akihito notices.

He's by her side with a tissue in a heartbeat. She lets him wipe the wound clean and then takes it from him to hold against the shallow gash. "You feeling ok?" Akihito asks gently. Mirai nods and smiles at him.

"Then let's get some dinner." He suggests as he stoops down to pick up the stone.

"I think that's an excellent idea." She says, "but you might want to change your shirt first." She says poking his exposed chest. He chuckles as he takes her hand in his.

"Yet another excellent idea. And from a bespectacled beauty no less." He grins.

She pouts playfully. "Unpleasant," she mutters.

They walk away from the damaged courtyard. They'll call the cleaners when they stop, but for now they enjoy the silence after the battle.


	4. Chapter 4

Mirai had no idea he was going to surprise her from behind. When her eyes caught a glimpse of greenish energy she spun around almost removing the bandage from her right hand. Instead she blinked in surprise into the eyes of Akihito. Almost embarrassed by her mistake she looked closer at the young man.

His dark brown eyes were gleaming with excitement.

On a quick look Akihito seemed perfectly normal. His outward appearance was blatantly human and it was so average looking that he raised no initial suspicion.

But if a Spirit World Warrior looked at him closely they could see a slight greenish light around his head and shoulders. It was very faint but Mirai had noticed that certain moods effected the half-youmu's aura. Like now, he was excited because school was over for the day and the two were going to go out for dinner. His enthusiasm showed in the energy he exuded. It was brighter and more apparent. The green aura glowed around him enough to catch her eyes.

On the other hand when he was sad or serious there was almost no glow to the energy surrounding him. It was almost invisible to her trained eyes. And when he was truly angry the energy darkened to nearly black.

He gave her a curious look. "Something wrong?" He asked.

She shook her head. "No." She said.

"Then let's get out of here." He suggested. She nodded and they headed down the hall.

For this reason alone Mirai still worried about him. Every Spirit World Warrior who was from out of town was liable to mistake Akihito for someone possessed by a youmu. That was wrong, as Mirai and the Nase siblings had learned. They'd once thought, rather mistakenly, that the young blond was separate from Beyond the Boundary. His mother had proven that.

For Beyond the Boundary to be properly stopped Akihito had been forced to accept it, not only for what it was, but as a part of himself.

He gave her a smile as they exited the main building and turned onto the sidewalk. She smiled back. Once they were a good ways away from the school they paused.

"Why do you keep looking at me that way?" Akihito finally asked.

Mirai felt her cheeks blush. She floundered for a moment. "I'm just enjoying the way you look when you're happy." She admitted.

"What do you mean?" He looked confused.

"Y-you have a g-glow about you." Her voice faltered.

"Huh?" His was bewildered.

"Because you're half-youmu, you give off an energy only Spirit World Warriors can see. When you're happy it's the brightest." She surprised herself that she said it without pausing.

His confusion turned to embarrassment. "Really?" He asked.

Mirai nodded. "Kind of like a halo."

Akihito smiled after a moment. "Thanks." He said taking her hand in his.

She smiled back squeezing his hand tightly.


	5. Chapter 5

Mirai looked at the picture and smiled. She genuinely smiled for the first time at the photo.

Yui had been gone for a year now, and Mirai had come to grips with her death with more than a little help from Akihito. His words had initially stung, but they had been right.

She gained nothing from exacting revenge on The Hollow Shadow. But then again she also was able to prevent another person from being possessed by it. She hadn't realized that that was what she had wanted in the first place.

To ensure that no one else had to go through what she had, watching a loved one become a monster.

"I am doing well Yui." She murmured. "I'm back to stay and I finally feel like I'm where I belong. I have friends now, genuine friends like you were. And I have a young man I have fallen in love with. He has no issues with my blood, in fact my blood can't hurt him. He saved me, I was so lost after you died, but then I met him and he helped me find my confidence and will to live again. And then I chose to sacrifice myself for him. It didn't work how I had expected but I am so happy now.

"I think that I can live a long and happy life now. Thank you for what you have given me. I'm so sorry you can't be here to see me now. I think you would like Akihito. He's so sweet and gentle. He's taking me out tonight, so we can eat your favorite dinner and celebrate the memory of you."

Mirai's eyes were wet with tears but she was still smiling. Her friend was gone, but her memory was still precious. She found herself wondering if Yui hadn't died, would Mirai have ever come to Nagatsuki?

Perhaps things happened for a reason. Maybe her fate was well intertwined with Akihito's. Maybe she'd been granted a second chance.

Either way her life was better now. She had never been happy before. Not like this, never as much as she was now.

As she waited for Akihito to arrive at her apartment Sakura approached. "Have you said you peace?" The girl asked.

Mirai nodded.

"May I?" She asked. The strawberry blond stood up and bowed her head. Sakura took her place on the floor.

"Yui-Niisan, I miss you. I didn't kill Kuriyama like I promised, but we have made up. I don't hate her anymore, because I know you wouldn't have wanted it. I carry your charm, to remember you by. I hope to do your memory justice from now on. I love you." She whispered.

The brunette stood and wiped away a tear as she smiled at Mirai. The two girls were quiet as they looked at the photo of Yui.

The silence was only broken by a knock at the door. Both of them looked towards the door.

"Kuriyama-san, Inami-san, it's me Akihito."


End file.
